(Seven/B'Elanna)
Read Fever Remedy
Disclaimer: Star Trek and Voyager and all things related to this belongs to a whole lot of people, none of them me. My very first Voyager fic.
Fever Remedy
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by Carola “Ryûchan” Eriksson
”No.”
The calm, simple statement stopped Tom Paris short in arguing his case to the EMH.
“No? Whaddaya mean ‘no’?!” Tom snapped, annoyed with the interruption. “It’s a great idea and you know it.” He turned again to the doctor. “You know we’re only on a break right now, it’s just a little misunderstanding that we’ll work out eventually, and it’s the only way to save her life!”
“A lot of people go for a bit of casual sex with their ex on occasion, and it’s for a good cause. No harm no foul, right Doc?” Voyager’s helmsman eagerly continued to try to persuade the doctor, not really noticing the deepening frown on the hologram’s face.
“No.” The level voice of Seven of Nine once again interrupted the conversation. “As in no, negative, absolutely not.”
A steel-meshed hand reached out to gently touch the stricken woman prone on the bed before her.
“I forbid it.”
It took Tom Paris a moment to overcome his surprise enough to feel outraged, a brief moment of time that the EMH used to stare speechlessly at the former Borg.
“You _forbid_?” Tom’s voice was rising and his gestures becoming almost violently agitated. “So who died and made you Captain, huh? Butt out of my and Lanna’s relationship, Borg!”
Finally, for the first time since entering Sickbay, Seven of Nine turned to actually look at the helmsman. Her stance was as ramrod straight as always and her expression neutral, but there was no mistaking the darkness in her eyes nor the steel in her voice as she spoke.
“You no longer have a relationship with Lieutenant Torres, Ensign Paris. I will not allow you to violate her wishes while she is unable to properly express them herself.”
Her voice gentled slightly as she turned towards the sedated woman and briefly traced a cheekbone with the tip of a Borg-enhanced finger.
“Nor do I believe that the Lieutenant will permit you to try, regardless of her state.”
And that, the doctor conceded, seemed to be nothing but the truth. Who would have thought he’d ever have to face _this_ particular dilemma?
It had started, as far as anyone knew, on what was a very ordinary day aboard Voyager. A few hostile encounters here, a minor crisis there, a moral dilemma and a bit of Captain Janeway flexing her Starfleet muscle, all in all a rather average day in the Delta Quadrant.
Then security got called to the messhall, where Vorik was wreaking havoc among the diners until Neelix knocked him in the head with a frying pan. Several tests later and the results were conclusive if surprising; the young Vulcan was once again going through his Pon Far, only it was much too soon. What had triggered this premature cycle?
No-one had thought to check on B’Elanna Torres… until Seven of Nine was assaulted by a raging half-klingon in Astrometics. Tal Celes had the good sense to alert security while the two women grappled, but failed to stop screaming for long enough to inform Tuvok what was happening. Seven eventually managed to use her superior strength to restrain B’Elanna until security got there, but by that time both women had severly torn clothing, and Seven was covered with small marks and scratches from the encounter.
Medication and meditation was supposed to help both the ailing engineers, and they were restrained to their quarters. But security failed to take in account the superior intellect and resourcefulness of the ship’s Chief Engineer.
This time Seven of Nine was in Cargo Bay 2 when she was assaulted by a half-naked B’Elanna Torres.
Amidst much wrestling and rough groping the younger woman managed to alert security to the Lieutenant’s whereabouts, and soon several security officers along with Tom Paris and Chakotay stormed into the Cargo Bay.
That was another mistake, as six broken ribs, two concussions and one dislocated shoulder would prove.
None of the injuries were on Seven or B’Elanna, but Tom Paris on the other hand held the highest tally of injuries sustained, and might have fared even worse had not one security officer finally managed to knock the enraged woman out.
B’Elanna Torres was then confined to sickbay, under guard no less, until a treatment could be deviced. It was very convenient, too, as the security officers standing guard got immediate medical care after she pummelled through them during her escape. Twice.
The first escape was ended in the messhall, where security collected her after B’Elanna had tracked Seven down to where she had been about to consume a nutritional supplement, tossed her up on the table, and proceeded to shred yet another biosuit. The fact that the engineer had gone from merely growling to gushing endearments as well as raunchy come-ons in both Klingon and English had confused the young ex-drone even more than the sexually aggressive behaviour, and her seeming helplessness had prompted several bystanders to attempt to come to Seven’s aid.
Before B’Elanna was once again subdued, she had knocked several officers and crewmen unconscious and thrown Harry Kim headfirst across Neelix kitchen counter, right into the pots and pans. Tom Paris, once again in the wrong place at the wrong time, got his face introduced to the same counter up close and personal, repeatedly, until finally his head was crammed into a thankfully cooling pot of leeolaroot stew. A well-placed phaser shot from Tuvok ended the melee, and B’Elanna Torres was once again taken to sickbay.
The second escape ended in the hallway near the turbolift, as Seven got off the lift just in time to be tackled to the floor by the half-klingon.
Security was not far behind, and hoping to prevent further injuries both to them and to B’Elanna herself, Seven attempted to distract B’Elanna by ceasing to resist her advances. The result was immediate and surprising, as the cessation in her struggles appeared to calm B’Elanna down considerably. Confused but no longer as aggressive, the smaller woman purred in Seven’s arms, causing Tuvok to order the security officers to stand back and give Seven some room.
Slowly and carefully Seven managed to coax the afflicted engineer back into sickbay, putting up with the Pon Far-induced affections until the doctor could safely sedate B’Elanna. She even endured B’Elanna biting her cheek, in order for the doctor to be able to administer the hypospray in a satisfactory fashion.
Seven then carefully lifted Voyager’s small Chief of Engineering and carried her over to a bed, gently arranging her on it in a comfortable way. She then stepped back just enough not to be in the doctor’s way as he attempted to treat the unconscious woman, but remained close by the bed.
She had remained there since.
The EMH watched silently as Seven brushed a few stray hairs from B’Elanna’s face. It was a surprisingly intimate gesture for Seven, who were not exactly known for initiating contact unless strictly needed, and it made the hologram wonder about his young protegé.
The doctor shook out of his ruminations as he realized he had missed whatever it was that Tom Paris had just said, only aware that the helmsman had spoken because he caught sight of Seven’s eyes narrowing in response. Was she getting _angry_ at Tom? Why that was just amazing!
“Irrelevant! Lieutenant Torres would not consent to copulate with you.” Seven almost snapped, making the doctor wish he had payed more attention to whatever Tom had said.
The doctor was just about to speak up to try and diffuse the situation when, thankfully, the Captain arrived. Janeway had been required to be present for a small ceremony for Vorik, as he had solved his situation logically, by marrying the young Vulcan female on board Voyager. While they had both been betrothed to others in the Alpha quadrant, logic would dictate that even should Voyager manage to cut more years of the long journey home, their respective would-be spouses would long since have given up on them and moved on. Janeway and Tuvok had both been present for the small ceremony, then Janeway had left Tuvok to have a private conversation with the newlyweds before allowing them to immediately move on to their honeymoon on the holodeck.
While it seemed inappropriate that the first actual wedding on board would be such a brief and private affair, Janeway was still glad her presence was not required for a longer ceremony. One of her girls were hurting, and Janeway wanted very much to be present to watch over her.
She had been kept informed of the events, of course, and knew that for some reason the young engineer seemed focused on Seven of Nine. While it had surprised her at first, it had made Janeway wonder about both of ‘her girls’, and whether there was something going on there that neither of them had realized. Well, with this information in mind, Janeway was not particularly surprised to find Seven keeping watch over B’Elanna’s unconscious form. She was surprised however, to enter the sickbay to the sound of raised voices. Specifically, Seven’s.
Oh, this was not going to be fun.
A glare caused the room to fall silent, until the doctor in an unusually straight-forward and unembellished fashion updated Janeway on recent events. Tom Paris added a few persistent comments of his own, and Janeway could feel a migraine coming on. And to think that a few days earlier, all she had to face was a few heavily armed ships threatening to prevent Voyager’s passing through their section of space by force.
She needed some coffee.
“So, let me see if I got this straight… B’Elanna isn’t responding to the treatment you gave to Vorik, and I might add that it didn’t work all that well on him either, which led to Tom suggesting the Pon Far be burned out of her system by” Her lips twisted slightly as she searched for a fitting word. “copulation.”
“With him.” The doctor couldn’t help but add, clearly showing his distaste with the whole thing. “Which, incidentally, Seven objects to rather… firmly.”
“But Captain…”
“Tom.” Janeway cut the helmsman off with a raised hand and a warning look. “I’m sure you have B’Elanna’s health in mind… and I truly hope that, for your sake, that is true. Seven?”
“Captain, Lieutenant Torres would not want this… cure.” Seven was uncharacteristically hesitant, but continued as she could tell that Janeway was waiting for her to say more. “I do not wish to… break a confidence, but I do know that Lieutenant Torres deeply regrets her past affiliations with Ensign Paris. To try to force her into intimate relations with someone she so greatly despises would be to shame her greatly.”
“I have no intention of forcing a member of my crew into anything of the sort, I assure you. And that is enough, Tom!” Janeway didn’t need to see the helmsman preparing to speak to know that he was about to object. “We haven’t tried all possibilites yet, have we doctor?”
“No Captain, there are a few medical options that I would like to try, and with your permission, I would also like to explore the possibility of using some of Seven’s nanoprobes to counter the effects of the Pon Far. Added to the medical treatment I would advise some holodeck simulations and meditation, though I am uncertain as to how effective that will be.”
The last time he had tried to use the holodeck to help someone clear the effects of the Pon Far had been a disaster after all, and he had even less hope that it would succeed this time. “The biggest problem is whether or not we have the time to explore these other options. B’Elanna is weakening, and we are running out of time.”
They all contemplated this in silence.
“Seven?” Janeway asked after a moment, not wanting to pressure the young woman into donating parts of herself, of her body, as Janeway had come to realize she had carelessly done many times before without recognizing what she was asking. Nevertheless, she was sure Seven would once again come through for them… and what mother could be more proud?
“I will do whatever is necessary.” Came the quiet response, as Seven once again reached out to brush a non-existent hair from B’Elanna’s face. She nodded slightly to herself, once. “Whatever is necessary.”
Janeway frowned. “Whatever is necessary? What do you mean by…” Janeway’s took in the healing but still very visible round bitemark on Seven’s cheek. “…oh.”
B’Elanna had chased Seven down time and time again, disregarding everyone else… Seven herself had not left B’Elanna’s side since the last encounter, actually permitting Tal Celes to be in charge of Astrometics in her absence… all those innocent little touches that was normally not in Seven’s nature… the fact that at the moment, the tall ex-borg was standing by the bed with the fingertips on one hand fidgeting with the sleeve of B’Elanna’s uniform jacket, as if she wanted to hold B’Elanna’s hand but did not know how to go about it.
Oh.
“Seven…” Janeway began gently, lowering her voice and stepping a little closer to Seven in a futile attempt at keeping the conversation at least semi-private. “while I… understand, you do realize that B’Elanna will not be… quite herself?” Oh wasn’t there any delicate way to put this? “That what she is going through, combined with her Klingon heritage, will make her… um, rather violent?”
“I am strong, and my Borg-enhancements will permit me to endure.”
Janeway sighed.
“It’s not about enduring, Seven… and you shouldn’t have to.” Janeway practically ached watching the emotions flicker in Seven’s pale blue eyes. “You’ve never… been, ah, intimate with anyone before.” Janeway smiled gently. “It wouldn’t be fair… to either of you.”
“We have not been adversative in some time.” Seven spoke so quietly Janeway barely heard her. “I will not let her perish.”
“And she won’t.” Janeway put a reassuring arm around Seven. “Have some faith in the doctor’s abilities, he won’t let us down.”
“Doctor, is there any way to wake her and keep her lucid for a moment? I would like to inform B’Elanna of her situation, and of her options” Here Janeway delicately cleared her throat and tried not to look at either Seven nor Tom. “in case she has preferences, or ideas of her own.”
It took the doctor a brief moment to adjust the dosage of the hypospray to a level that he hoped would temporarily give B’Elanna some control back, and then a moment longer before B’Elanna began waking up.
B’Elanna twitched a little. She grunted. A hand came up to wipe lazily at her face, then finally her eyes fluttered open. Her gaze swivelled around a bit before focusing on Seven, then she broke into a big smile. “Hi.”
“Hello.” Seven gave a tiny smile in return.
“Hey…” B’Elanna spotted the bitemark on Seven’s cheek, and her eyes got round. “we didn’t have another ‘Son of K’vok’ moment, did we?”
“Ah yes, B’Elanna…” Janeway interrupted. “there are some things you must know…”
Janeway kept the explanations as brief as possible, knowing that the effects of the hypospray might not hold out for long, but still she got no further than to explaining Tom’s offer to cure her before B’Elanna got very agitated. Once they had sent him into the hallway and out of immediate sight, B’Elanna calmed down, but she still made sure everyone present knew, without a doubt, that she would tear Tom limb from limb if he tried to come near her.
Janeway quickly continued to explain the other options, earning a grunt and a nod of assent for nearly all of them, and then hesitantly mentioned Seven’s offer. To say that B’Elanna looked surprised would be an understatement.
“Captain, could we uh, have a moment?”
Janeway and the doctor tried to comply as much as they could to B’Elanna’s request, backing away to continue working on finding a cure while still keeping a discreet eye on B’Elanna. It was as close to any real privacy they could offer, given the circumstances.
“Seven?” B’Elanna was quite hesitant, unsure what exactly she should say and how to approach the other woman, feeling her raging hormones pounding ever harder on the fragile walls of her reason. “I, um, you, ah…”
“I will not allow this affliction to defeat you, Lieutenant. I will assist you.” Seven sounded very matter-of-fact, but her fingers had started very lightly tracing the skin on B’Elanna’s wrist.
Twitching a little, then turning her hand until their fingers brushed together, B’Elanna tried to come up with what to say in response that didn’t risk turning into hysterical laughter or ravaging Seven on the spot. “Seven that’s very… and you… but…”
“It would be a… reasonable… arrangement. You are essential, and I have no romantic affiliations to consider.”
“Well, Seven, the thing is that I do… or hope to have anyway.” B’Elanna smiled affectionately at the implant that rose up in question. “I’ve kind of gotten my heart set on this particular person, even if I don’t think that person knows it.”
Seven blinked. Twice. Then she removed her hand from B’Elanna’s and took a tiny step back. “I see.”
Seven’s gaze was locked somewhere on the wall above B’Elanna’s still reclining form, and her voice was turning remote. “If the identity of this individual would be revealed, he or she might be persuaded to provide the assistance you need, in that case.”
B’Elanna rose up on her elbow and snatched Seven’s hand back into her own. She grinned.
“See, the person I want, well, she’s very special. I’ve been blind to what I really felt for such a long time, but my eyes have been open for a while now and I… want a chance to build something lasting with her.”
“But she doesn’t see how special she is, so I want to prove it to her… treat her right. Take all the steps, do all the little things. Woo her.”
B’Elanna smiled a bit self-consciously and reached out to caress Seven’s face. She heard the tiny gasp as Seven’s breath hitched at the touch, and watched the blue eyes go wide as she gently pulled the younger woman closer.
“You deserve to be wooed, Seven...” B’Elanna breathed the last nearly upon Seven’s lips. “…and I fully intend to.”
Then she kissed her.
It took B’Elanna a long moment before she could force herself to release Seven’s sweet, responsive lips and move back a little, as the Pon Far in her system was regaining control bit by bit. She growled and breathed in deeply of Seven’s unique scent, before making the other woman stand back and create a little distance between them.
“Doc!” B’Elanna snapped out, causing two gawking eavesdroppers to start guiltily. “My control is slipping, you better be ready with that hypospray.”
And it was quite obvious that so was the case, with B’Elanna visibly perspiring and twitching. The doctor hurried to her side with the hypospray, but she stopped him from injecting it at the last moment.
“Captain…” B’Elanna grimaced a little as she spoke, clearly struggling with herself. “if Doc comes up with a treatment, that’s fine, but I want to try the holodeck. Ask Tuvok to adjust one of my holoprograms and remove the safeties… he can change the program so someone can monitor me and pull me out if it goes to far… but let me work this out of my system like a warrior.”
Janeway hesitated. What B’Elanna suggested was beyond dangerous, and instinctively she wanted to stop the young woman from doing something that would surely cause her injury, but… but. It was, objectively speaking, an idea as sound as any they had, and B’Elanna wasn’t letting the doctor inject her with the sedative until she had Janeway’s response.
“Allright, I’ll… take it up with Tuvok.”
B’Elanna nodded gratefully and released the doctor, who immediately injected her. Then she laid down and waited for the sedative to take effect, silently watching as Seven leaned forward and brushed some hair from her face.
“I learned long ago… B’Elanna…” Seven spoke softly. ”that resisting you is truly… futile.”
The charmed but sleepy grin on B’Elanna’s lips were answered by a full-blown one from Seven, and it was the last thing she saw before sleep claimed her.
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